Forgotten Soul
by FersureZelda
Summary: Her mother died, her father's an alcoholic. She lives alone in this wretched world... until she met him, the new boy next door. She fights unbeatable odds for the mear chance to be by his side, but will he accept? [[KairiXSora]]
1. The Familiar Shadow

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not**

intended to name any realistic person/place.

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

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**Prologue:**

The sorrow in her eyes never left. It followed her wherever she went, haunting her, almost mocking her, of its great dominance over her forgotten soul. She was broken, no doubt, and had lost confidence in herself quite long ago. For why should she care, she was just a no body. Kids in school didn't know her name, even teachers often forgot it. Her name was Kairi and this is her story.

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**Chapter One: The Familiar Shadow**

Ring. A familiar sound is heard throughout the building that confirms the end of another school day. It is the Grant Elementary School bell. "At last," Kairi thought to herself, " I finally get to leave this place." She shoves some school books into her pink Yoshi backpack and rushes out the door dodging the other kids who are also in a hurry to leave.

"Man it, its raining!", she says to herself in a devastated tone. Kairi hates to walk in the rain. Her parents don't pick her up so she always has to walk home no matter what the weather condition is. "Well, at least it isn't snow.", she thinks. She begins to walk home getting more than drenched in the pouring rain. Her Converse shoes have holes in them every which and where. The water begins to reach her feet, they are now frozen wet. She walks.

Her home is still miles away on Canal Street behind the old Ardy's building. It isn't much, just a small three bedroom house with old faded curtains. The floor creeks and the walls have holes here and there. The place may be a dump but its the only thing she has.

Alas, she reaches the bridge leading to her house. As begins to cross, she notices a figure standing on the other side of the rusty black rail. The figure appears to be crying as she gazes at the river below her. Kairi cautiously walks towards the figure staring in concern. "Why does this woman look so familiar, who is she?", she thinks to herself.

The woman is on the edge of the bridge only supported by the rail on which she holds onto. She flinches when she hears Kairi approach then turns her face towards her. A sad look crosses the woman's face. "I'm sorry.", the woman says in a hushed low whisper. Kairi watches as her hand slowly lets go of the rail and the woman falls into the water. Kairi begins to cry. The woman begins to drown as she sinks to the bottom of the river and is out of sight. Air bubbles float to the top. Moments later, the body appears once more, floating lifeless face first in the river stream. The woman's dark long hair floats, sticking to the lifeless body. She is dead.

Kairi screams for help, for someone, anyone, to come and help her. The woman cannot be dead, she just can't. She screams and screams only to be heard by no one. The silence is deafening, the only sound is of the girl's sobbing and screams.

Her eyes begin to swell, but she cannot leave where she is at. She can't even move. She just sits there along side of the bridge staring at the woman's body. "Why did I just let her die?", she asks herself feeling more than responsible for the death... the death of her _mother_.

Feeling more than devastated, the girl jumps into the river. She wants to die. She wants to feel the pain no longer. She falls in and doesn't know how to swim. She begins to splash around gasping for air, only to breath in water. She coughs and coughs and begins to feel dizzy. Her head aches and she begins to feel weak. She suddenly hears voices and loud noises surrounding her, then nothing. She is gone.

She was only 12.


	2. White Walls, White Curtains

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not**

intended to name any realistic person/place.

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 2: White Walls, White Curtains**

She wakes to the sound of voices. As she opens her eyes, she looks around herself to see only white walls, curtains, and a table. The room is so bright she can barely see. Kairi turns on her side and begins to get out of the hospital bed. She places her hands firmly on the bed and pushes herself up. As she begins to walk barefoot towards the doorway, a small, short woman sees her from her desk in the hallway. The woman was approximately in her 40's and had long beautiful curly hair. She got up from her desk and walked towards Room 127 where the girl was at.

"Well, hello there, how are you feeling this morning, sweetie?", the short woman asked.

"I'm okay, I think.", said Kairi in a low confused voice.

"That's good, honey, you gave us quite a scare, you know."

"I'm sorry.", the girl said ever more confused.

"It's okay, I'll call Dr. Lou to check you out but he should send you home in a couple days, I bet that'll be nicer than staying in this o'l place.", the lady stated.

The woman went back to her desk and picked up a cordless phone next to the computer. She talked for a minute or so and then placed the phone back on the charger. She looked over to Room 127 once more to check that the girl was still there then started working on her computer.

Kairi went back to her bed and sat there examining the room once more. It was so unbelievably bright in that room. She looked around trying to find at least one object in the room that wasn't a hint of white but was unsuccessful. "Dang," she said to herself, "If I didn't know any better, I'd think I was dead!". "It is pretty weird in here isn't it?", asked a voice that came from somewhere in the room. "Uh, yeah...", she said in a curious tone, trying to figure out where the voice came from. That's when she noticed something she hadn't before. Behind the pure white fabric curtain next to her bed was someone else's bed. She couldn't tell what they looked like with the curtain there, but she presumed it was another kid that had spoken to her.

As she was about to speak again, the doctor came in. Dr. Lou was a tall man with short blonde hair and thick black rimmed glasses. He walked in holding a clip-board with a pen attached at the top left corner. He looked through the papers in his clip-board then walked up to Kairi.

"I'm going to have to do some check-ups to see how you are doing, okay?" asked the doctor, in more of a 'standard-procedure' tone.

"Uh huh." responds Kairi.

The doctor proceeds on with his examination. He checks this and that then writes down notes in his paperwork. Once he's done, he flips on the television and and hands her a remote telling her she can watch t.v. now if she prefers. After that, he simply walks out the door and goes over to the desk to conversate with the short woman.

Kairi decides to flips through the television channels trying to find something to watch. Lawn & Order... Trading Faces... and finally she finds it. Lanny Phantom. She sits back, fluffs her pillow, and begins to watch the show, trying her best not to think about what had happened the day before.

"Is that show any good?", she hears the voice ask.

"Yeah, you should watch it... do you want me to pull the curtain so you can?", she asks in concern yet also curious to see what the child looks like.

"Nah, I've got my own t.v. in here, besides, I don't think you'd like to see me anyway" says in the voice in somewhat sarcasm.

"Why not?"

"Because I don't look so good. That's all." responds the voice in sorrow.

"You can't be that bad," Kairi says in sympathy, "I promise I won't laugh or anything..."

"Okay, but I warned you."

Kairi gets up from her bed and walks over to the curtain somewhat nervous to see what is behind it. She grabs hold of one end and walks ever so that the curtain between them is out of the way and her television is in perfect view. Then she lets go and walks back to her bed and looks over to her room-mate. "See, isn't that better?", she asks. The child nods in return.

_The child next to her had tubes connected in his arm and around his nose. He had lost most of their hair due to Chemo-Therapy but managed to have some here and there. He had pale white skin and a tiresome face. The word around the hospital was that he only had a couple months._

A familiar voice is heard in the hallway. It is of her father.


	3. Homeward Bound

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

**Chapter Warning**: This chapter includes strong language.

* * *

**Chapter 3: Homeward Bound**

"Mr. Tesloh, you'll be glad to know that your daughter is in magnificent shape and may go home with you today. Though, I do suggest therapy sessions with our local child psychologist so that she can get any feelings or thoughts out concerning the _accident_.", states Dr. Lou to Kairi's father.

"Okay thanks Doc, but my daughter's not crazy, I'll be taking her home now.", says Mr. Tesloh in a demanding voice.

Mr. Tesloh nods a good-bye to the doctor and then walks towards Room 127.

_Mr. Tesloh was a tall serious man with dirty blonde hair. You never saw a smile on that man's face, even on his good days. Once in awhile, you might see the left corner of his lip curl just a tad, but that is only when he's had a few drinks with his buddies. At home, or anywhere else for that matter, he always appears to be angry or irritated. His family have gotten used to it by now, they just stay out of the way when they see him coming._

He walks in and sees Kairi at the foot of her room-mate's bed. He glances at the boy and a speck of sorrow phases through his eyes.

"Kairi, get out of that hospital gown and lets go.", he states to his daughter.

"Okay dad, can I say good-bye to my new friend first?", asks Kairi.

"Whatever, just make it fast." Mr. Tesloh says, "I'll be right outside waiting."

Mr. Tesloh walks out the room and sits down on a chair nearby. He finds himself a hunting magazine and starts to impatiently flip through it. He looks at this and that but doesn't really concentrating on anything in specific. "Damn, Kairi, lets go already.", he thinks to himself then looks at his watch.

_Back in Room 127, Kairi prepares to leave and says her good-byes._

She looks over at her friend and says, "Well I guess this is it... maybe I can come see you sometime."

"That would be nice. I'm gonna miss having my hospital buddy next to me.", the boy says.

"Yeah, I'll come by sometime, I promise."

The boy nods in agreement.

"Well, I have to go now, see ya later.", she says optimisticlly.

Kairi gets up from the bed and picks up her clothes from the small table then goes into the bathroom to change. She puts on her clothes then opens the bathroom door and begins to leave the room. As she's about to exit, she hears the voice once more. "By the way," the boy says, "My name is Akio."

Kairi walks out the room and looks to her left to find her father. He sees her, drops the magazine he was glancing at, and begins to walk out of the hospital. Kairi follows. They reach her father's car which was parked not so far from the hospital's entrance. _The car is a small beat-up vehicle with a red tint to it. They have had it for years now, but couldn't manage to purchase another due to financial problems. _They get in.

"I can't believe your dumb-assness, what were you thinking jumping off a bridge like that, Her father questions, "You truly are stupid!"

Kairi sits there in the passenger's seat trying to fight back the tears she has kept inside the whole day.

"First your mother goes and fucks up her life leaving me to deal with the shit we've _both_ been going through... You know the police haven't left me alone since. They keep questioning me about our fucked-up family and they even tried to take you away to some damn orphanage. Can you believe it, those son-of-a-bitches think they know all about people like _us_. Like we're some kind of filth. They don't fucking care, Kairi."

Kairi begins to sob ever more than she was before. Salty wet tears stream down her face. Her father continues to drive without a significant sign of caring that his twelve year old daughter is just as hurt as he is.

They reach the house, both walking in silence. Then she picks up the phone from the changer and runs to her room slamming the door shut. Kairi pushes "Talk" and dials the number she has called so many times before.


	4. Another World

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not**

intended to name any realistic person/place.

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 4: Another World**

"Hello?", the familiar voice responds.

"Hi Namine, I'm so glad you picked up. You won't believe what happened.", Kairi says still holding tears in her eyes.

"Kairi, I don't think this is a good time. I'm kind of... busy." answers Namine, in a sad tone trying to hide why the real reason she cannot speak.

"Oh, okay, well I'll talk to you later I suppose."

"Bye Kairi."

"Bye Namine."

Kairi hung up the phone feeling more and more confused and lost. "Why didn't Namine want to talk to me?", she kept asking herself. _Namine had gorgeous blonde hair and dazzling baby blue eyes that no boy in his right mind could resist. She and Kairi had been bes tfriends since the second grade. The two spent every waking moment together since the day they met at the park. They shared secrets, planned sleepovers, and even did each other's hair. The two were inseparable, until now. _

She lays in bed thinking about Namine... her mother... her _life_. Soon she drifts to a deep sleep. Thoughts drift through her mind, memories phase by. She is in another world. A world where death is unexisting and friendship is forever. Somewhere where she can giggle and laugh without any sorrow. The place she has longed for so dearly since the day of the _accident._

_"Momma! Can Namine and I stay a little bit longer... PLEASE?" _

_"Okay, okay, just a few more minutes." her mother answers then giggles as she sees how happy her daughter is._

_"Thanks mum, you're the best!" Kairi says then runs off to play on the merry-go-round with Namine. _

_The girls play and run around the park. They go down the slide, only to climb up once more. They swing up high, just to jump off and swing again. The play, they laugh. They are truly happy. _

But then it happens. Thoughts of reality slowly force themselves into her mind. They hold onto her and don't let go. She fights what she so desperately longs to forget. She tosses and turns as she lays in her bed as she resists. Though as hard as she might, they grab hold and poison her mind. She begins to cry as she starts to remember the day that _it_ happened. The day her mother died.

_"I'm sorry.", her mother says in a hushed low whisper. Kairi watches as her hand slowly lets go of the rail and her mom falls into the water. Kairi begins to cry. The woman begins to drown as she sinks to the bottom of the river and is out of sight. Air bubbles float to the top. Moments later, the body appears once more, floating lifeless face first in the river stream. The woman's dark long hair floats, sticking to the lifeless body. Her mother is dead._

_Kairi screams for help, for someone, anyone, to come and help her. Her mother cannot be dead, she just can't. She screams and screams only to be heard by no one. The silence is deafening, the only sound is of the girl's sobbing and screams._

_Her eyes begin to swell, but she cannot leave where she is at. She can't even move. She just sits there along side of the bridge staring at the woman's body. "Why did I _

_just let her die?", she asks herself feeling more than responsible for the death... the death of her mother._

Kairi awakens.

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_Author's Note: Sorry the chapter is so short. I didn't really enjoy writing it. Though don't fret, Chapter 5 is on its way._


	5. Rumor Has It

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not**

intended to name any realistic person/place.

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 5: Rumor Has It**

It's Monday morning, another school day had emerged. Kairi slowly gets out of bed dreading to face all the sorry faces and strange stares the day has in store for her. She walks to her closet and picks out whatever she can find which happens to be grey t-shirt and an old pair of jeans with holes at the knees. She goes over to her bed and dressed. Then she goes into the bathroom and looks into the mirror. "Man, I look like crap.", she thinks to herself.

_She had rings underneath her eyes from not getting enough sleep and a pale tint to her face. Her hair was also a mess. It had knots and no particular direction to it, it just sat there going every which and where. Her beautiful strawberry-blonde hair looked disasterous._

She grabbed the hair brush and brushed out the knots to make it look decent. She pulled it up in a pony-tail leaving her bangs hang at the side. She exits the bathroom and enters the kitchen to find some breakfast. She finds beer bottles scattered all over the table that her father had left from the previous night.

_Kairi really hates her father. She knows its wrong but she can't help it, really. He's never home but always at the bar. Whe he is home, he always criticizes her and yells at her for what she does wrong, even if she trys her best to make him proud. She's even went out of her way to make him a birthday cake once, only to be yelled at for the mess she made in the kitchen. It used to really upset her when she was younger. At twelve years old, she got used to it. She realized that, with so much time he spent out drinking, she doesn't really know him, only his bad side. He started to become only a shadow in her life, walking in and out of her house yet remaining unnoticed, a mear stranger. And you know what they always say, "NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS."_

Kairi picks up the empty beer bottles and throws them in the trash. Then she finds herslef some milk and a box of Lucky Charms. She grabs a bowl from the coverd, prepares herself some cereal, and begins to eat.

The clock strikes 7:30 a.m., she has to go. She scoops up what is left of her Lucky Charms and runs to find her backback. She exits the house and begins to head to school like always. As she walks, she notices kids from school are staring. They know.

She finally reaches the shool building and enters the gymnasium, where the students await the for the morning bell to ring. She sits down on the bleachers alone, as she is too scared to hear what the kids at school have to say. Whether its sorries or akward silences, she wasn't in the mood to deal with that at the moment. She knows what they did when Jason Rye's father died. They went around saying how sorry they were, only making him feel worse by bringing it up. The bell rings and its off to class. "Joy.", she thinks to herself, only being sarcastic.

As she enters her 7th grade class, she looks down at the ground, trying to avoid any eye contact what-so-ever. She takes a seat in her desk in the back of the classroom and sits quitely.

"Pssst!". A voice nearby is heard. "I heard her mom jumped off a bridge last weekend and died!"

"Yeah... I heard Kairi _pushed _her!", says another voice.

"No way!", says the first voice.

"It's true, Riku saw the whole thing!"

_Riku had long hated Kairi for quite some time. He held a grudge bigger than any human being could hold. His hatred grew and grew for years as he had to get her back for what she had done to him. You see, when they were eight years old, Riku had a tremendously large crush on her. He lived nearby, only a couple streets away. He'd come over to her house everyday anxious to simply see her. They developed a friendship, the two, but he wanted more. He wanted to call her his own, and be envyed by his friends for being chosen over all to be her boyfriend. Kairi, however, only saw him as just a friend. She told him the truth, feeling terrible for breaking his heart. He ran home to his house and cryed in his bedroom for days. At school, he wouldn't even look at her. She tryed to make things right but he simply wouldn't even talk to her. He planned, since that day, that he would get back at her for ever turning him down, and so it was._

The whole day, kids couldn't help but talk about what they heard happened to Kairi's mom. The rumor spread far and wide throughout the school building. Anyone who was anyone knew that Kairi Conner was a _murder._ Wherever she went she heard voices talking about it. Hushed whispers and angry stares surrounded her. There was nowhere she went where they weren't talking about her, about the _lie. _Kairi went to find Namine, hoping she would talk to her and get them to stop.

"Namine, kids are saying I killed my momma, why are they saying that, its a lie you know.", Kairi said as tears stream down her face.

"Kairi, Riku said he _saw_ you.", Namine says in sorrow.

"But, I _didn't _do it!"

"I'm sorry Kairi, I'm not allowed to talk to you. Everyone thinks _you_ did it. They'll hate me if they see me with you, I'm sorry."

Namine walks away, leaving Kairi alone and in tears.


	6. He Loves Her

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

**Author's Note**: Minor Problem has been fixed. For all of you who first read this when published, Roxas is only a boy in her dreams. He is NOT real. Sora is soon to come.

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**Chapter 6: He Loves Her**

That night Kairi spent alone in her bedroom feeling excuciatingly depressed. Why did Riku have to do such a horrid think like that? She felt so much hate for Riku, the other kids, and herself. Anger built inside her like boiling water. She hated them all, she had done nothing to them to deserve this, she thought. The anger and stress grew rapidly within her, she wanted it gone. She grabbed a razor of her father's from the bathroom and broke it into pieces until she had the razor blade itself left. With that, she began to push the blade into her skin, first slowly then a bit faster carving into her arm as blood gushed out. Other kids did it, why shouldn't she? Afterall, they _want_ her to bleed, she _deserved_ it.

For days, she had nightmares of the night _it_ happened. It kept repeating itself in her mind, never letting her rest. Whether it was the dreams at night or the kids at school, it was left unforgotten. It followed her everywhere, so she continued to cut.

But then, one night, the dream changed. There was always a boy there with her, not Riku nor anyone she had met before, but someone else. _The boy had blonde spikey hair and gorgeous deep blue eyes. _He was always there standing near her. He'd sit on the bridge with her and hold her tight, wiping away the tears that streamed down her face with his hand. "Don't worry, you're safe with me.", he'd say as he whispered into her ear.

She didn't know what it was about him that made her feel so safe and out of harms way, afterall, he **wasn'**t even _real_. Something about the way he held her, comforted her, made her feel _loved._ Soon she spend more and more time sleeping, awaiting to meet the boy in the other world. The nightmares disappeared, and she only dreamt of the boy who was always there. She had wonderous dreams of being with him. They giggled, kissed, and dreamed of forever, though she would always awake to find herself alone once more. She didn't care though, he was better than reality. Unlike anyone she knew, he loved her and knew the truth about her mother.

_"You're beautiful, inside and out, I don't understand why they don't like you.", he says to her as he gazed into her radiant eyes and kissed her._

_"They don't believe me, that's all, but I don't care. I have you now." she answers then gives him a kiss in return._

_"I love you.", he whispers into her ear._

_"I love you, too"_

_He takes her face into his hands and they share a final kiss._

_They sit and watch the sunset as they hold hands. Kairi leans on his shoulder and gazes at the magnificent view. He turns to look at her and can't help but smile. He slips his hand through her fingures and holds her tight not wanting to let go, too scared to let go. He's scared he'll loose her like he has so many times before, they times when she has awaken and return to her own reality. He holds her hand tighter. _

_He loves her. She loves him... the boy by the name of Roxas._


	7. A Boy Named Sora

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Minor Child Abuse, and Minor Profanity

* * *

**Author's Note:** By the way, thanks for all the reviews and adds since the last chapter! Enjoy...

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**Chapter 7: A Boy Named Sora**

_It now has been two years since the accident. As she promised, Kairi returned to the hospital to visit her friend Akio, her one and only real friend in the real world. Though as fate would have it, Akio passed away a month later. She attended the funeral and still visits his grave every now and then, as well as her mother's._

_Kairi also continued to see Roxas but soon realized that what they had could never be. They lived in separate worlds, unable to fully be together. She knew that they should say their good-byes soon, before it hurt more for the both of them. He had been her first real friend, liking her for who she was and not for what others thought she was. It hurt so much to do what she knew she had to do, as she awaited for sleep to overcome her to meet him once more. She's only 14._

_"You're back!", he says to her, "I started worrying you were gonna stay up all night!"_

_She smiles just a bit, but sorrow fills her eyes. "I have something to tell you."_

_A scared expression crosses his face, "Go ahead."_

_"I've had a great time being with you, but I... I don't think it can work out. I can't just sleep my life away, you know.", she says as her eyes begin to water._

_"Don't cry." he says to her as he wipes away the tears streaming down, "I understand... don't worry, we'll meet again soon."_

_"I don't think you understand...", she begins..._

_"Oh, but I do, more than you realize.", he whispers. "Good-bye Kairi."_

She awakes. Salty dried-up tears cover her face. Her face feels so stiff, she feels so cold. She lays there in her bedroom staring at the ceiling. "What did he mean by that?", she wonders. Did he not understand that their relationship cannot be? She gets up and washes her face then gets dressed. It is a Saturday morning.

She walks outside barefoot, thinking about her life when she hears people next door. There is a moving truck stationed next to the empty house nearby. She watches as furniture, boxes, and other things are brought into the house. A woman and her son are moving in.

Kairi decides to go back into her house and make the new neighbors a cake as an excuse to meet them. "Chocolate," she thinks to herself, "Everybody loves chocolate." She grabs the the box and carefully looks at the directions. She turns the oven on at exactly 360 degrees and begins to mix the ingredients together as directed. She diligently pours the batter into a pan and places it into the oven. Once the timer goes off, Kairi takes it out and covers it with icing after it cools. As she walks to the house, she feels herself overfilled with anticipation, perhaps she'll make a new friend.

"Hello?", a woman answers.

"Hi, I live next door, my name is Kairi, I made something for you.", she says cheerfully.

"Why thank you!", the lady says then puts the cake on a near by table. "Let me call my son, I'm sure he'll be happy to meet you... Sora!"

"Yeah, mom?", the boy answers.

"This is our new neighbor, Kairi, she made a cake for us, isn't that so nice of her", says the mother.

"Hi, I'm Sora."

Kairi takes her sight off the mother and looks at the boy. She feels a strange connection towards the boy, as if she had met him before. His spiky hair and blue eyes seemed so familiar to her. If she didn't know any better, she'd think it was Roxas. "Nah.. impossible.", she thinks as she stares at him. Sora also looks at her in confusion. He had never lived in Destiny Island before so why did she look so familiar? There was a spark in her eyes that captivated him. He didn't want to be rude, but he could help but stare.

"Okay, well we better get back on fixing up the house but thank you so much for visiting.", interrupts the mother.

"No problem.", says Kairi to Sora's mom.

"Come back some other time, dear. Bye."

She walked back home in almost a trance. Sora. She cannot think about anything but Sora. Could he really be Roxas, they seemed so alike. She laid in bed that night thinking about the two. What did Roxas mean when he said he'd see her soon, was that it, did he know? But how could _that_ be? She fell asleep and dreamt about Sora, the new boy next door.

There was something about him...

There was something about her...

_Roxas had been visiting Kairi for the past two years. He wasn't part of reality, just simply lived in the world of dreams. Roxas, being a part of Sora kind of like his spirit, was able to meet Kairi. So it was as if Sora had met Kairi through his other self without the knowing. In result, Kairi and Sora shared a connection of which they did not understand._


	8. Dear Diary

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Author's Note:** This Chapter includes grammer issues and slang that are intended for the chapter due to how it is written.

* * *

**Chapter 8: Dear Diary**

_March 3th, 2006_

_Dear Diary, _

_So this kid just moved in next door, his name is Sora. OMG does he remind me of Roxas. He's absolutely adorable. He has really sexy brown spiky hair, to-die-for dazzling baby blue eyes and Oh-my-God sexy muscles in his arms and abs. Can you say HOTT-NESS...(raises eyebrow slightly)? _

_Today he came over and asked if I could give him a tour of the town (which I of course agreed to). We walked around town for an hour or so then stopped by at the o'l ice cream stand by the park. We had ourselves some nice delicious ice cream (of which he paid for XD) and sat on the swings for a while. He pushed me on the swings and we laughed and giggled as he tickled me to death. So... I accidently kicked him... (staight face)... I swear I didn't MEAN to... it's just that well, he was all tickling me and it tingled so much that I couldn't control myslef. I ended up kicking him in the face with my foot! ... He happens to have a black-eye now... (opps)...!_

_He said it was okay though (which is good because I was about to cry I felt so bad)! We ended up going back to his house, where is mom checked out how bad he got it and put dis-infecting cream on the scraps. (Man, I felt so bad). Then as oppose to what I did to him he said I owed him (making it sound like he was angry or something, he even had his angry face on). Well, it turned out I owed him a date to the movies! (Phew!)._

_So I most definately accepted the offer. His mom dropped us off at the movie theater at six-thirty and we went to see Screaming 3. He bought the tickets, some popcorn, and our drinks. As we walked in, it was pretty much empty (probably because we got there early). We choose seats in the middle row, where it wasn't too close, nor too far away._

_The movie hadn't started so we sat there and talk for a bit. He teased me about his darn black-eye so... I threw popcorn at him. As you whoulda guessed, we ended up having a popcorn fight. Popcorn was flying EVERYWHERE! He even tryed to dump the whole bucket on me... can you believe it? So I stole the bucket and threw it at him. OMG it was so much fun! People that were coming in kept staring but I sure as heck didn't care._

_Five minutes till, he went it and refilled our popcorn bucket so we had some for the movie. I sat there waiting, when I saw Namine. She was with her friends just staring, giving me a dirty look. Whatever, I didn't care. I wasn't going to let her ruin my night with Sora. I gave her a dirty look in return and turned around. Sora came back and sat next to me, as the movie was about to start. We sat there watching the movie and eating popcorn (Man, did I like him). _

_So, maybe the movie turned out to be one of the scaries things I had ever seen. I think Sora noticed becuase he slowly put his hand on mine and held it tight. That definately made me feel better. I think he knew I was scared, that or he was just being extra friendly (if you know what I mean!). Lol. _

_When the movie was over, we went outside to wait for his mom. We stood by the wall and I started to shiver so he let me borrow his jacket. XD! His mom soon came and she drove us home. We said our good-byes for the day and hoped to see each other soon in school tomorrow._

_School. Oh Boy, I think. Will he still like me even if he hears what they say about me? Namine even turned on me, and she's been my friend forever. Will HE still like me? Oh buddy, I sure hope so, I had a extrodinary day today. We went out for ice cream, played at the park, and went to the movies. Nothing coulda been better. Even Namine and all her friends left us alone at the movies. Oh God, I hope he still will like me..._

_Love,_

_-Kairi-_


	9. First Day Back

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place. **

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the wait, I had sudden plans and didn't get to finish the chapter. I'll try to stay a chapter ahead (just in case).

* * *

**Chapter 9:First Day Back**

Buzz. The sounds rings through her ears as her alarm clock vibrates. Kairi opens her eyes, yawns, and goes over to turn it off. She feels excitement overcome her as she thinks about Sora and seeing him once more. Then again, she's also nervous as she remembers about Namine and all the kids at school. She hates them so much. "One of these days, they're going to realize the truth about momma," she thinks to herslef "but then again, it'll probably be too late." She prepares herslef for school and walks to Sora's house since his mom offered to give her a ride.

"So, who's homeroom are you going to be in Sora?"

"Room 205.", Sora says.

"Great, that's mine too."

_Students were returning fromSpring Vacation. That meant new classes, teachers, and schedules. Kairi is now a freshman in high school this year, meaning not only did she have to deal with the kids she knew from the Jr. High, but also the upper classmen who had also overheard the wretched rumor that was about. Kids still didn't associate with Kairi. As for Riku, he had been overjoyed with Kairi's pain. He had now taken everything from her... her reputation, her happiness, her bestfriend. _

_Namine started dating Riku around the time of the accident. This was all part if his plan. He would ask Namine out, knowing she liked him for some time. Then she would have to take sides when she was told the lie that Riku had invented. He would take Namine from Kairi. She would be left with nothing. Kairi would be miserable, all as planned. _

_Though over the years, Riku started to feel bad for what he had done. He is now 15 and doesn't even care about the exaggerated turn-down. He was what 13? It was just a stupid date, why did he have to be so cruel and self-centered? He caused great sorrow and did something that could NEVER be forgotten... he ruined her life._

"Okay kids, we're here. I'll pick you up at 3 o'clock."

"Aight mom, bye."

"Bye".

They walked into the commens and picked a table by the door. She watched as people stared, wondering who the boy next to her was. Namine walked in with Riku as usual, and walked by with a confused look on her face. She thought about walking over and seeing what this was all about but didn't, "I'll see the new kid soon enough.", she thought. The morning bell soon rang, they were off to their first period class.

"So, what do you have first?", Sora asked in a curious tone.

"Biology 1, you sir?", she questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Bummer, I have Health.", he says as he snaps his fingers.

They walk together, as Kairi shows him to his first class. The teacher is outside the classroom greeting the students a good morning. The man is around is 30's, not old at all, wearing a blue dress shirt, not too formal nor too casual, and an ID card around his neck stating the school's name as well as his own.

"Well, I guess I'll let you be and see you around later. Maybe we'll meet again in another class, who knows!", Kairi say optimisticly.

"Yeah, I sure hope so. Well, thanks."

"No prob.", she says as she walks off to her own class.

Sora walks in as he is greeted by the teacher, Mr. Marks. He finds an empty seat near by which happens to be by a blonde haired girl and her boyfriend. "Oh boy", Sora thinks, "They better not be making out 24/7 or I'll just go ahead and hurl!" The girl turns over and sees him, giving him an interested look.

"Hi, I'm Namine... and _yours_ is?"


	10. Popularity Contest

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place. **

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 10: Popularity Contest**

"Ah, Sora...", he says to the blonde haired girl.

"You must be new, I've never seen you before. Did you just move here over vacation?", she asks.

"Yeah actually. I moved in next door to Kairi Tesloh, do you know her?"

Namines eyes widen. "Oh my God, _that's_ why you sat next to here this morning..."

"Yeah, so."

"Well I didn't want to be the one to tell you this, but you shouldn't hang out with her. She has a bad rep."

"And, why is that?", Sora questions, still not trusting her.

"Well, two years ago... she went crazy or something. She killed her mom. Kairi pushed her off a bridge by their house. Then, you know what she had the nerve to do? She sat there and stared at her mom's dead body float in the water, not regreting a thing. Riku saw the whole thing. Right, Riku?", the girl asks as she elbows her boyfriend who was too pre-occupied talking to other girls near by.

"Ah, yeah.", says Riku just to satisfy Namine.

"You ass, I was talking to you.", she says as she glares at him. "Didn't you see Kairi kill her mom?"

"Oh, yeah, I saw the whole thing dude. It's true.", Riku says to Sora.

_Although Riku felt bad for what he had done, he wasn't about to tell everyone he was a lier either. So what, he thought, someone was going to tell that kid anyway. Might as well be him. He wasn't going to risk screwing his life up for something that was already done._

"Ok class. No more chit-chat. Now we're going to go over the class procedures, expectations, and ...", the teacher began.

* * *

_4th period has just ended and school is at its end. The last bell has rung and students are at their lockers gathering their belongings to take home, along with some school books for upcoming exams and so on. Sora meets up with Kairi in the commens as planned._

"Hey, how was your first day of school here?", Kairi asks in an almost nervous tone.

"Eh, alright I suppose. Too bad I didn't have any classes with you, though.", he says disappointed.

"Oh.", Kairi says as she looks down and blushes.

"Yeah, kids here don't seem that nice. They talk about a lot of lies and rumors. I guess they don't have a life of their own, they have to make up something."

"You heard, huh?"

"Yeah, some Namine girl and her boyfriend told me. I don't trust them though, they seem fake."

"What I don't understand is, why do you believe me? Everyone else turned their back on me. You know, people are going to start talking about you too if keep hanging out with me, maybe you shouldn't. I don't want them to do as they did to me...", she begins in a low hushed voice.

He touches her chin with his hand gently and looks into her eyes. "Kairi, I don't _want _friends like that. If that's how they all are, then screw them. I'm not gonna let them get to me. Your the best thing I have right now, I'm not going to throw that away for some _popularity contest_."

A small tear appears and runs down as it touches her lips.

She is smiling.

Sora looks out through the glass doors. His mother is parking in front of the school, it is time to go. They pick up their bags and head out the building. They walk side by side, as their hands touch. Sora feels the soft touch of her hand. He craves to reach out and hold it, but is afraid they may be moving too fast. The craving gets to him. "Whatever.", he thinks to himself as his hand grabs hold of hers.

And so it was, they walked out of the building holding hands. People stared as the new kid walked with Kairi Tesloh.

He didn't care.


	11. She Gets What She Wants

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the wait.. I couldn't consentrate nor come up with how to write it. It's also short... sorry.**

* * *

**

**Chapter 11: She Gets What She Wants**

Kairi and Sora started to spend more and more time together. The two were inseperable. They started to really cared for one another as the time passed. They were bestfriends, and soon a couple as the time came...

"Kairi.", Sora said but almost hesitated.

"Yes?"

"Well, I was wondering... what do you think about _us_? Are we just friends or... ", he began but couldn't find himslef finishing.

"Oh. Well... I don't know. I guess it depends on you, really, because... I really like you Sora.", she says nervously.

He breaths in, as he had been holding his breath without realizing it. "That's what I was hoping you'd say."

He digs in his pocket of his cackies and pulls out a ring. "It isn't much, it's not an engagement ring or anything, but I was wondering if you wanted to wear it."

She smiled. She puts the ring on her her finger and kisses Sora. She is so happy.

Namine walks by and sees the two, Kairi and Sora. They are looking at each other in admoration. Their eyes are so full of longing for one another. It makes her sick. She holds envy inside her, she wants Sora for herself. She glances at them and leaves to her own home not so far way. She walks through the door and begins up the stairs towards her bedroom. She begins to write...

_

* * *

Dear Dairy,_

_I'm thinking about breaking up with Riku. He's such a fucking ass-hole. I can't believe I ever liked him to begin with, he's so self-centered. The loser has been hitting on other girls since school started. I wanna dump his ass. I don't know if I will though, I don't like to be single either. I wanted to go out with Sora soooo bad but he has a girlfriend._

_Can you believe he and Kairi started dating? Yeah, he asked her out a couple days ago, I was about pissed. She **so** doesn't deserve him.She killed her mother for crying out loud! I honestly don't see what he sees in her. Okay, so maybe Kairi and I used to be best friends a long time ago... that was a **long **time ago, before she fucking decided to go crazy._

_I don't see how he can trust her so much. I'd be too scared she'd pull a knife on me or something. I swear, she should be lcoked up... or at least in a mental institution. But hey, I guess I can't blame her. I mean, her dad is fucking alcoholic and her mom used to do drugs. That's gotta be it. Kairi started doing drugs. There's no other rational explaination for why she would kill her mom._

_Damn, I gotta get Sora away from her. He deserves better... I derserve him, not her. Then I could finally get rid of that stupid ass Riku._

_That's what I'll do. I'll take Sora away from her..._

_xox-Namine-xox

* * *

_

She closes her journal and hides it underneath her matress once more. A smirk runs through her devious face. She will destroy their relationship, they won't know she did it. Alas, she will have him all to herself. She layed there in bed plotting her future plans. She will get what she wants.


	12. Pink Shimmery Mixture

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 12: Pink Shimmery Mixture**

She reaches for her notebook and begins to write using favorite pink gel pen. The ink is absorbed by the paper, it is soaked in, leaving the pink shimmery mixture on the paper. She is so excited, she is about to write him a note. Once she finishes, she folds it up and places it in her purse. She is so impatient, she wants to see him. She applies her make-up and gets in the car. It is a Friday morning, she is on her way to school. A smirk runs through her face. The end of school day approaches, not a moment too soon.

"Mrs. Ling, may I go to the restroom?"

"Make it fast, the bell is about to ring.", Mrs. Ling answers.

"Okay, thanks."

She grabs the hall pass, and is out the door. She scans the lockers, in search of #127, that's his locker. She finally finds it and slips the note through the vet at the top. It goes through and lands inside on the shelf. She returns to her classroom, awaiting the bell.

The bell rings, Sora helds to his locker. He puts his business book and math book in his bag. He about leaves when he sees a note on the self of his locker. He smiles, Kairi left him a note again. He puts it in his jean pocket and shuts his locker. He meets up with Kairi in the commens as always and head home in his mom's vehicle. They say their goodbyes for the day and depart, each going to their own house.

He pulls out the note from his pocket. It is writing in pink gel pen, he smiles. As Sora begins to read, the smile disappears from his face. Instead a tear seems to emerge from his eyes. He can't believe her. How could she say that? He picks up the phone and calls Kairi. They talk and so on and begin to agrue. He believes Kairi wrote the note, he hangs up. Kairi is devistated. She knows who wrote it, she plans on confronting them.

She walks over to Namine's house, not so far away from her own. Kairi walks up the stairs and knocks. Riku is there, he answers.

"Uh, hi?", he answers quite confused, wondering why she is there?

"Where Namine, I need to talk to her.", she says demandingly

"Namine!", he yells.

Namine is in the bathroom, she just got home from school. She's washing her hands in the sink, there is a hint of a pink shimmery mixture on them. She dries, and exits to see what Riku wants.

"What?", she asks irratedly.

He nod to the doorway where Kairi is standing.

Namine smiles. "What are you doing here?", she asks sarcasticly.

"You know perfectly well why, Namine. Why'd you do it?"

"Because, Kairi, you don't deserve him. Besides, I think I'm doing him a favor... who knows you might try to kill him too someday."

"How could you say that? You and I used to be friends, don't you remember? Do you really think I would do that?"

"You killed you damn mother! Riku saw it..."

They continued to argue spitting names back and forth, Namine got to her though. She tried to be strong but she couldn't bare it. Sora hated her, so did everyone else. She decide to leave. She wasn't going to stand there and let herself get ran over.

"Wait!", Riku yelled to get her attention.

She turns around and stares at him.


	13. A Vivid Memory

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 13: A Vivid Memory**

"Kairi didn't kill her mom, Namine.", Riku says boldly.

Namine looks at him in disbelief, "But you said...".

"Yeah, I _was _there, but it didn't happen that way.", he says as he looks down. "I was walking home from school, when I saw it. Her mom was committing _suicide_. She didn't give Kairi time to do anything, before she let go of the rusty old rail. I watched as she fell into the river and moss clinged to her hair as she gave he last breathe. I was in disbelief of it all... I just stood there as I watched Kairi jump into the river herself. She started to drown, as I realized she couldn't swim, so I ran down the hill and saved her. She was unconscious when I brought her up to the riverside, so I layed her down and ran to get help. Once they arrived, I left. That's the truth Namine, so will you alas leave her alone?"

Namine and Kairi both look at him in shock.

"Why did you lie Riku? Why did you make up that terrible lie if _you_ were the one that helped me? I... I don't understand.." Kairi questioned.

"I was stupid, I guess... I still had mixed feelings for you. I didn't want you to die but I still wanted to get that sweet revenge. I went too far though, I should have _never_ said such a thing. I'm sorry.", he says to Kairi sincerely.

_The two made-up, Kairi and Riku. Although Kairi has suffered dearly due to what Riku had done to her, she also wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for him. She forgave him and he in return started telling others the truth. Namine, after hearing Riku's confession, felt horid for what she had done. She ended up telling Sora the truth, at her own loss and he and Kairi started speaking again. They didn't become bestfriends per say, but everyone was at peace letting go of any grudge that had been held over time. Things started to become easier for Kairi. The truth was alas revealed.

* * *

_

_Yet another school year soon aprroaches. It summer time. The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, there is laughter in the air. Kairi, Sora, and Namine will be going into 10th grade, while Riku advances to 11th._

Kairi enters her house, she has just returned from the movies with Sora. She had such a great time, it was magnificient.She walks by her father, who happens to be drunk, as usual.

"Kairi, where the fuck have you been?"

"The movies, dad.", she says as she rolls her eyes._ "He's been drink," _she thinks, "_Go figure."_

"Don't disrespect you father, you lil shit.", he says as he suddenly punches her in the face.

She lies there in the ground overwhelmed by his actions. He had never hit her before. Never. She holds her hand next to the right side of her face where her father's nuckles had just touched. The pain stings, blood drips from her nose.

A vivid memory onvercomes her mind...

_"Shut the fuck up Lisa, you know I'm doing my best!"_

_"Damn it. You don't understand, do you? You need to get help. Drinking is not the answer!"_

_"Those damn people won't do anything... I can quit myslef. I'm not even addicted... I just **like** to drink!"_

_"Baby, please. Just go see them.", Kairi's mother begins to cry. _

_"Stop that shit! There's no need for that shit here."_

_"Please, just go get help.", her mother pleas._

_"DAMN IT!", he yells as he grabs hold of her and has her against the wall. "I am fucking fine. Shut up!"_

_He lets go and she slides down the ground as sobs uncontrolably. _

_Kairi closes her bedroom door. She had seen enough. _

Kairi gets up from the ground and runs to the door. Her father runs after her, determined not let her go. Kairi reaches the door. She grabs hold of the knob and begins to twist, jerking the door open. As she is about to exit, he finally reaches her. He grabs her and pulls her inside once more. The man gives a swing at her again.

Kairi sees as his fist comes towards her, though hasn't the time to react. She is hit unconcious.

She lies on the ground.


	14. The Tast of Salt

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 14: The Taste of Salt**

Kairi wakes and is blinded by the light coming in from the window. The light is so bright and luminous. She watches as dust floats, lifeless, around her. The room is so dark yet it appears to be daylight outside. She gets up from what she realizes was the ground and sits up right. She is feels so confused, she does not understand. _What had just happened? Hadn't her father been drunk? Where is he now? How much time had past?_

She stands up and decides to freshen up in the bathroom. Her eyes feel heavy and full of weariness. Kairi enters and turns on the faucet, running cold water through her hands and washing her face. She reaches for a towel and pats her face dry, as she does so, she looks up into the mirror. Her heart begins to pound faster and faster within her. She stares into the mirror in disbelief. There is no reflection.

She stares into the glass mirror, and its emptyness. Kairi takes her hand and touches the glass, yet not a glimpes of life is reflected onto the mirror. Her breathing increases. How can this be? Kairi exits the bathroom and searches for her father, or _anyone _for that matter. As she leaves the house, she sees Sora who is mowing the lawn next door.

"Hey!", she says relieved to find him.

Sora continues to mow the lawn. He doesn't even move a muscle, as if he had not heard her at all. She tries again to speak to him, only to be showered in failure. A salty wet tear appears in her saddened eyes. It streams down and begins to fall. The wind begins to pick up, blowing the wet tear onto Sora's lips.

He feels the wet mixture on his lips, whiping it away with his hand. The taste of salt still lingers on his mouth. He can't help but feel sorrow over come him, although he hasn't the slightest idea why.

Sora goes to school the next day and notices that Kairi's house is empty. The house looks pitch black with no sign of anyone living inside. _"Where is she?"_, he thinks to himself. It all seemed so peculiar to him. Kairi would have never left without telling him so, let alone with her _father_. There must be something wrong, shouldn't there?

Days go by and there is still no sign of her at school nor next door at her house. What had happened to her? The last time he saw her was the day that they went to the movie theater, had she moved while he and his family were visiting relatives that night? If not, what had happened?

Kairi sits as she watches life go by through the faded window. She does not understand what has happened to her. _Had she died the night that her father hit her? Had he killed her? If not what is going on? She must be dead, there is no other explanation. Where is he anyway?_

Days, weeks, _months_ went by and she was still trapped in this form of being. As if she were a ghost, rejected from the state of death, yet unable to take part with the living. Her soul was not at the burning depths of Hell, nor at the gates of Heaven, she was caught in between.

Kairi did not know what to do with herself, so she spent her days by the window and blankly stared as life went by without her. She used to see Sora come by and wipe off the dust off the window to look inside, but he gradually stopped as the months went by. Sora eventaully gave up on the thought of Kairi's return. It had been five months since her and her father's disappearance and figured they had moved. Meanwhile, he and Namine had become closer. Soon they started dating.

Kairi watched as the two left his house... holding hands.


	15. Midnight Sky

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 15: Midnight Sky**

It is Sora and Namine's one month anniversary since they started dating. Sora still hasn't managed to get Kairi out of his mind. He cannot help but wonder what _their_ one month anniversary would have been like and where she is now. He tries to brush the thought off when he sees Namine come by for their date as scheduled. He opens the door to see his grlfriend dressed in the most amazing outfit a girl could possibly wear. Namine was wearing a white t-shirt that had a beautiful baby blue design which matched her gorgeous eyes, a jean mini-skirt, and cute old navy flip-flops. The girl looked dazzling.

"Why are you staring at me like that?", she asks as she gives him that cute corner half smile guys adore.

"You looks beautiful, that's all.", he says to her, ashamed to be caught staring.

"Well, shall we go?", she questions him, as she raises an eyebrow.

"Yeah, just let me get something first."

He leaves and searches his room until he finds the box he was looking for. It was wrapped in pretty warpping paper and tied with ribbons and bows. He takes it and places it in the back seat of his car.

"What was that?", Namine askes curiously.

"Ah, nothing, what are you talking about?", he says sarcasticly as he smiles.

"Em, hm..."

As they both get in the car she speaks again. "By the way, you look pretty hott yourself.", she says with a smile as she looks him up and down.

Sora was wearing a black AFI t-shirt, jeans that were particularly ripped at the knee, with a white stud belt and a pair of adios. He also had moosed his hair, spiking it every which and where while having his bangs brushed to the side.

"I know, don't I?", he answers with a smirk.

They drive off spedidly dow the highway in Sora's convertable mustang until they reach the city park. It is a small area full of beautiful fowers, joyful childrem, and a magnificent landscape. Sora chooses a wooden table nearby and places his mother's picnic basket on top. _"The night is going as planned.", _he thinks to himself asuradly. The two sit side by side as they embrace one another. Namine looks into his eyes and gives him a passionate kiss. He closes his eyes and lets the longing take him away...

Memories shift, thoughts collide...

_Kairi giggles as their lips embrace. It feels so good to him. He hold her in his arms delicately, as if he could break her fragile body with the slightest move. She smiles longingly at him, he loves her so much. They hold one another afraid to let the other go. It was a beautiful September day._

He opens his eyes and is forced back to reality once more. Her blonde hair...pale skin... this isn't Kairi...

Her face expression changes from happiness to sorrow in one blink of an eye. Namine knows he was thinking of **her** for at least that brief moment. It is written all over his face, his _eyes, _his **lips. **A single tear falls into the ground; that is all, no more, no less. She knows what she must do but is still afraid. She holds feeling for him, he still has his set on _her_. She does what she must, although it tears her heart apart.

"Sora.", she begins.

"Yeah?"

"Do you still love Kairi?", she asks, knowing and fearing the response she knows he'll give.

He nods.

"Well you know what you have to do, right?"

He looks at her in confusion. "No..."

"Go find her."

"But, what about..."

She cuts him off and answers what he was afraid to ask. "What _about_ me? You obviously love her. It's okay, I understand. If you want me to be happy, then let me _go _and search for the one _you _**love**. There's other guys, I'll find someone else. Don't worry."

He stares at her in joy yet sorrow nonetheless. "Thanks."

They sit there silent for the time being. He feels relieved but yet afraid he might not find _her_. What will he do? He is lost without **her**. Alas, Namine is happy for him. He can finally follow his heart but yet, she is sad, she is no part of it.

Fireworks light up in the midnight sky. A gorgeous view is upon them. What would have been a beautiful night out, is simply a night full of fear and sorrow. He is free to search for her as he pleases, but will he find what he's looking for, or did he just give up on something beautiful he _already_ had? The fireworks continue with their beauty and magnificence. It is the 4th of July.


	16. Dark Shadows

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 16: Dark Shadows**

The next day, Sora went in search for the answers. He now had the freedom to go and look for Kairi without feeling bad he was attached. Though unfortunately, he came up with nothing. He spent the day asking neighbors, school teachers, or anyone for that matter but know one knew what had happened to Kairi Tesloh. The neighobrs nearby were never too fond of Mr. Tesloh, they kept their distance and kept to their business. They didn't even know the man's name. Though there was one person who may know what had happened that night, sadly the woman was very discrete and did not like to socialize. She had lived there for as long as anyone can remember. She had to be at least in her late sixties. Sora tried to speak to her but she wouldn't even open her front door. She wanted nothing to do with people she had no business with.

That night Sora felt anger and disappointment. He didn't understand, why would she leave without him, without even saying a word? He sat on his front porch and stared blankly at the empty house next door. He was so eager and determined to find her before, but now he simply feels beat and loosing hope. He continued staring at the old white house, its dusty curtains, and its piled up newspapers.

_"I got to find her."_

Sora gets up from the porch and walks up to the house, _her_ house.He turns the door knob, it is unlocked. The door creeks as it opens. His heart feels heavy, it begins to beat faster and faster. His palms are sweaty, he doesn't know why.

"Hello"

"Is anyone here?", he asks feeling dumb. He knows the response.

He walks around in search for something, a clue of where she would be now. The house looks as abandoned as it does from the outside. There are mounds of clothing laying in random places, beer cans, and a leftover baloney sandwich. Baloney, just the thought of it makes him want to barf, let alone one that hasn't been touched in months. Okay, enough with distractions. He didn't come here to look at a old moldy baloney sandwich.

He shifted his view from one object to another, trying to find anything that would be significant. He walks to Kairi's room, maybe he'd find something there. Looking around he see nothing that would giving hima lead. All her belongings appear to be here, everything was left untouched since he last was in here. He didn't understand. If she had moved, wouldn't she take her personal belongings? The bed was made, the room looked as always, but there was something that drew his attention from the corner of his eye. It was was a locket.

_When Kairi was still a child, at the age of only five, she was given a silver locket. Her mother had given it her for her birthday. It was in shape of heart and had the words "I'll love you forever" ingraved on the back. Kairi always wore the locket around her neck, evermore after the acciedent, tucked neatly under her t-shirt. Sora had seen it once before, they day before her disappearance. _

He picks up the locket and runs the small link like chains of the necklace through his hands. He holds it on his plam, closing his fingers and grasping it tight. Oh how he feels as though he has her, but yet, it is only a locket made of silver, but still, it was a part of her. He puts it in his pocket and walks out of the room, only to see what he hadn't noticed before.

Dried up blood covers the living room wall.

His heart begins to pound once more. He's breathing heavy, he cannot swallow. Kairi? Could it be? No! This cannot happen, it simply can't. His mind begins to race, thoughts seem to emerge out of nowhere. They are surrounding him, like dark shadows circling, awaiting to defeat their victom. He must leave this place. He has seen enough. His heart is racing a thousand miles per hour, as he was backwards in shock, then finally turns and leaves.

The door is left open, Kairi sits by the window as tears stream down, following the path they have long know.

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_**Author's Note: Okay, so I'll try to get the next chapter done as soon as I can. Sorry for the cliff-hanger, it was a must. XD. So anyway, the next chapter should reveal it all for those of you who were wondering about Kairi. Thanks for all the reviews. **_

_**Also, please check out my new Oneshot and review it. I only have two reviews and I'd really like to know more of what people think about it. Please review it... I'd really appriciate it! **_


	17. The Truth Revealed

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 17: The Truth Unfolds**

Kairi has seen enough. The pain flows through her viens as she just saw the one she loves witness her place of death. I mean, she had to be dead, right? What else could it possibly be? Oh the agonizing hurt she feels right now, she has never felt this before. Well, once. The day of her mother's death. She feels no need to live, if that is what you want to call it anyway. Why should she sit here without a purpose in the world? She knew what she must do.

She walks into the bathroom barefoot, as her once soft skin begins to stick to the hard tile. She opens the bathroom cabnet. _Oh how she can still move objects, but that is meaningless if she remains unseen._ She grabs a razor, the one she had used before, and begins to slice through her skin. She was not afraid of the pain, she was tired of this. She took the razor and swipes it back and forth in every direction, as she watches streams of blood run down her skin.

The blood she lost was enough to kill her surely, but that would take time. She didn't want to wait, as she realized her mistake. She dropped the razor onto the bloody floor, and ran to her father's bedroom door. He had always kept a gun, hidden on the shelf. She now was about to take it and finally meet her fate. If she really was dead, then this possibly cannot hurt. As she clentched her teeth, and her heart began to skip beats, she pulled the trigger.

No, but surely, it did not hurt. As she felt light-headed, she fell to the ground.

_She awakes and looks at her surroundings. She is no longer in her home, but somewhere else. Grass surrounds her, swings, a slide, she is at the park. Her mother sits right next to her on a bench. She studies her face, the aging lines on her mother are not there. She appears healther, happier. She shares a precious moment with her mom, a lovimg memory she doesn't want leave her._

_"Momma!", she yells as she hugs her and smothers her with loving kisses. Oh how she missed her. _

_Her mother smiles understanding. "I missed you too."_

_Kairi laughs silently. "I should have done this long ago. Then we could have been together as we are now."_

_Her mother's look changes to happy and playful to serious. "Baby, you can't stay here."_

_A look of confusion crosses her face. "Why not, I am dead aren't I?"_

_"No, honey. But you need to let go to move on."_

_"Let go of what?"_

_"Me."_

_"I don't understand.", Kairi begins. _

_"You were never responsible for what happened. You need to know that. I did something stupid, its as simple as that. Don't punish yourself for it. Let go."_

_With that, Kairi began to understand. Not completely, maybe not at all, but she listened to her mothers words and did what she was told. She drifted away from the world she imagined, was it Heaven, she sure didn't know. _

She gains conciousness and opens her eyes. She looks around and recognizes the room. She is in a hospital once more. The white walls, the white curtains, the scent of old people. Yeah. This is the place. A familair short woman with long curly hair greets her.

"Well, hello there, how are you feeling this morning, sweetie?", the short woman asked.

"I'm okay, I think.", said Kairi in a low confused voice.

"That's good, honey, you gave us quite a scare, you know."

_Wow. Deja Vu. Hadn't this conversation happened before?_

"I'm sorry.", she says. _Yup same response._

They begin talking and she realizes what had happened. Her father had hit her that night nine months ago, he put her into a coma. She hadn't been able to respond until this day. She cannot yet walk nor move most of her body. But atleast she can talk, she no longer feels _invisible._


	18. The Locket

**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Sora, Kairi, or any other Kingdom Hearts characters involved in this story. Other persons/places mentioned in this story are fictional and are not intended to name any realistic person/place.**

**Warning: **This chapter and/or future chapters may include: Suicide, Self-Inflicted Harm, Alcohol Abuse, Child Abuse, and Minor use of Profanity

* * *

**Chapter 18: The Locket**

Kairi spent her days at the hospital. It took days, weeks, months, but the nurse and doctors did the best they could to help her regain her strength. She worked so hard to simply be able to walk, she had to see him again. He was the only thing on her mind. She had no idea what was going to become of her after she got out of the hospital, but one thing she did know, she _had_ to find him. She hadn't went through all this to leave empty handed.

"How are we today?", the nurse would ask.

"Ah, better than yesterday but not good enough." she would always respond.

"You'll get there honey, soon enough, you'll see."

"Yeah, I know."

"That boy sure must be something to have you this anxious."

"Oh Wendy, he is. He's amazing, if only you could meet him. He has ocean blue eyes, oh those eyes are gorgeous, and soft, thin lips that feel great against mine. And on top of all that, he has the greatest personality. He's the only thing that has kept me going, you know."

"I know, I know, you have told me all this before. Just be patient, and with time you'll see, that you'll be out of this hosiptal and with that boy.", the nurse assures her.

The two giggled as the dreamt. Kairi was so eager to find him again.

* * *

It was a week before school started when Kairi left the hospital, a week before their senior year. There had been so much change that had occured in the little town, who would have known. Her old house was bought and sold to a new wedded couple. The ice cream stand had closed. Sora's home was up for rent. That wasn't going to stop her, not after all this. As she continued to walk, she spotted a familair face.

"Kairi?", she said in in awe.

"Hey, Namine."

"But, I thought... ", she began.

"Thought what?"

"I'm sorry, its just that Sora, oh God... Sora... he thinks your dead."

Kairi laughs silently at the way Namine simply spat it out. "Yeah, I know. You won't know where to find him, would you?"

"Why, yeah actually. He spends at lot of time at Midnight's Peak, I was about to meet him there." A smile appears at the corner of her lips, "Come with me."

_Since the day Sora had entered the abandoned house that was once Kairi's, he spent a lot of time alone thinking. Namine, who had become one of his besfriends, knew he needed space and a place to be alone, so she told him about Midnight's Peak, the place where she would go to be alone. They spent a lot of time there, whether it was sitting in silence or talking about their thoughts and dreams. They talked about everything, everything included Kairi. _

"Okay, this is it. Just follow the path up and you'll be there." Namine says eagerly.

"Thanks."

As Kairi begins to walk uphill, her heart begins to race much faster than before. _What if he doesn't remember me? God, what if he he doesn't even remember my name? Then I'll feel stupid, but I can't help but wonder. It's been at least a year since he last saw me, it could well be possible. _Her hands begin to sweat. _Oh great, now I'll smell as well as feel ridiculed. _It begins to sprinkle, but yet its not rain. It's like a mist substance falling from the sky. _Rain, just want I need. _She feels so nervous, she cannot swallow. _Oh what have I gotten myself into?_ She reaches the top, without a moment to spare. _God, there he is._ Sora stands at the edge of the cliff, staring at the view below him, the mist like sprinkles surround him. _Please remember me..._

"Sora?"

He turns around to face her. "Oh my God, Kairi!"

She nods and smiles.

"But I thought..."

She laughs at his confused look. "Nope. I'm alive."

"But how? I saw the blood on the walls of your house. I guess I just asumed... but what really happened?"

She soon explained what had really happened. How her dad had been drunk that night and struck her into a coma. How Silent Sue, the old lady who doesn't get out of her home, saw what happened through the living room window. She had called the cops on her father and the ambulance took Kairi to the hospital. They had kept her there until she regained movement in her body and strength, and since her father was put in jail, child welfare searched for a new family for Kairi. She soon found a nice home with the Davidsons down the street.

"...And well here I am.", she said with a smile.

Sora couldn't take his eyes off of her, he simply couldn't. He was amazed, astonished, by the fact that the girl he once thought he would never see again was standing before him. A single tear forms and slides down his left cheek. _Could this simply be a dream? A figment of my imagination? A mirage? God, I don't care. I only know I'm not going to let her go this time. _He only stood there baffled by the mear sight of her. He was scared to blink, afraid she would disappear before his eyes.

Kairi saw the tear sliding down his face. Her smile grew wider. She gently took her hand and wiped the tear away, holding on to his cheek bone as she leaned in to give him a tender kiss. Lightning eluminates the mist filled sky. Drops of water cling to their hair, they continue to kiss ever more passionately than before, as thunder echoes around them. They stand holding one another surrounded by the mist like substance, almost as if it were fog.

He takes his lips off of his belovid, long enough to speak. "I have something for you."

Confused she asks, "What is it?"

"A locket."

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**_Fin. So, I hope you liked the story. Please leave reviews and let me know what you thought about the ending or the overall story if you hadn't reviewed yet. Thanks for reading, and thanks for the overall reviews I recieved throughtout the story. Gives Hug To Reader._**


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